Chicago schools CEO pays a school $150,000 to defy the teachers' union.

[madfloridian]

Suddenly after telling teachers there was no money for their 4% raises, there is enough money in the hands of CEO J. C. Brizard to pay each school over 100 thousand if they go against their union.

He has also offered to pay each of the teachers in those schools $1250 if their school goes along.

I really do hate to use the word bribery, but it is sounding very much like it.

A One-Man Stimulus Package

Talk about a sudden reversal of fortune. On June 15, Mayor Emanuel's hand-picked Board of Education voted (unanimously, of course) against paying CPS teachers the 4% contractual raises they were scheduled to receive this year. At that time, the board claimed it did not have "a reasonable expectation" of finding the money -- roughly $80 million -- to cover those raises.

What a difference a couple of months make. On Tuesday, CPS CEO J.C. Brizard became a one-man stimulus package, offering to pay each of the city's 482 elementary schools $150,000, if the teachers at those schools quickly agree to extend the length of the school day by 90 minutes. If all the schools sign on, Brizard's so-called "incentive" payments will add up to about $72 million.

But just in case $72 million isn't enough to seal the deal, Brizard is also offering each of the roughly 13,600 teachers at those elementary schools a lump-sum payment of $1250 -- you know, just to show he cares. That's another $17 million in newly discovered greenbacks.

An important point from the article...Rahm wants those longer school days so badly that he hasn't had time to clarify what they are about. He's pushed for them since he became mayor, and his appointee Brizard is paying well to get those longer days through.

The consultants might also wonder what teachers and kids around the city will be doing with the extra 90 minutes each day. To date, no one from CPS has bothered to tell the principals how that time will be spent. It's not clear, for example, whether individual principals will get to decide what's best for their kids, or whether CPS will mandate a one-size-fits-all approach, as it recently did with school breakfasts.

I believe 5 schools had turned from the union on this, and it is giving the administration some ammunition against the unions. Of course they forget to mention how well they pay now for breaking the backs of unions. It is quite profitable.

Here is more from an education blogger about this pressure being put on schools.

At the end of the day...

In the 30-something years I've been around Chicago's public schools, as an educator, a parent, an education writer, and school reform activist, I've never seen anything like this. Mayor Rahm Emanuel's cynical, politically-motivated move against teachers and their unions dwarfs by comparison, anything his predecessors have done under the name of school reform.

After only being able to pressure and bribe four schools into accepting his longer hours for less pay scheme, Rahm has mobilized his toadies in the city council to put the muscle on principals in their ward, who are being told in no uncertain terms to deliver their schools, or else.

The idea that adopting a longer day means waiving their contract — and scabbing on their own union — is perhaps the biggest hurdle facing Disney Magnet Principal Kathleen Hagstrom. At a local school council meeting Thursday, Disney teachers responded by asking questions about what a longer day would look like, and worried aloud that taking the vote was akin to crossing a picket line.

They are right to worry on both counts. No one knows what a longer day would look like. Rahm has made clear that he favors using the time for more test-prep in reading and math. And it's becoming obvious that this all has little to do with actual school improvement but is rather a thinly disguised plan, most likely hatched over at the Civic Committee, to neuter the union and eliminate teachers collective bargaining rights.

And I find myself wondering where the money came from, wondering who their benefactor might be. It certainly is a lot of money to throw at getting a longer school day....when in fact the unions are not really against the issue. They just want to know how it will be used.

There wasn't enough money for the teachers' 4% raises

But now there is enough to pay schools and teachers quite well to get something they could have gotten by cooperating with the union.

On second thought...it really does sound like bribery.

[madfloridian]

1. More. Duncan called Chicago school days a "badge of shame"

"Yesterday, Rahm brought his pal Arne Duncan back into town to stump for the more-seat-time plan. I gagged when I heard Duncan call Chicago's school day, a "disgrace" and a badge of shame." Duncan autocratically ran the schools here for seven years under the last mayor and with a compliant union leadership."



"Have you noticed how Duncan likes to preface his remarks with, "absolutely" or "there's no question about it" when there are always questions about it?

More Duncan:

"I think it's important to have a good process, to have input from teachers, from the union. But at the end of the day...

Have you noticed how duplicitous Duncan always feeds us the b.s. first and then drops the hammer after the words, "but at the end of the day...? Like, "I'm against all this test prep, but at the end of the day...

http://michaelklonsky.blogspot.com/2011/09/at-end-of-day.html

[msanthrope]

20. He's right. A less than six-hour school day? It is shameful. And the union rejected a longer day

in negotiations....

"The Chicago Teachers Union says that’s a bribe. Jesse Sharkey, vice-president of the union, says CPS didn’t like the answer it got when the union rejected a longer day for every elementary school. So it’s trying to negotiate individually with 482 elementary schools.

SHARKEY: You know with principals running around to individual schools saying, ‘There’s $150,000 on the line if you vote for this!’ I don’t know how else to characterize that. It’s pressure. It is a bribe. It’s irregular. The votes have been pushed through quickly without enough consideration on the part of the people who are going to be doing the work, and it’s a terrible way to run school policy."
http://m.wbez.org/story/cash-incentives-will-continue-schools-moving-longer-day-91583

[Creideiki]

57. True. Teachers should have 8 hours of contact with students and then go home and spend

10 to 12 more to get ready for the next day. Because you say that merely having a degree, residency requirements, and constantly working on continuing education isn't worth a teacher's salary.

There are times I'm sorely disappointed in this board, but almost never moreso than when "Democrats" start beating up on teachers.

By the way, you might have the single most perfect username on the board. Never change it.

[madfloridian]

58. Most here do not consider teachers worthy, you are right.

And yes, Democrats are beating up on teachers. It is tearing me up inside.

[msanthrope]

65. No, I'm saying schools should not close at the teacher's lunch break--2pm.

I hope you understand that in Chicago, the majority of schools close--CLOSE, mind you, at the teacher's lunch break--2 pm.

That makes less than 6 hours per day of the school being open. That's not what taxpayers are paying for.

Now, not for anything, but I was a teacher. It does not take a competent teacher 10 or more hours to get ready for the next day. It just doesn't--unless you don't have a handle on the subject matter.

It is true there are busy days. Hell, there are busy weeks and periods of time. But 90% of the time, I managed to get my work done during my assigned prep times. I was rated a highly-effective teacher, and I enjoyed my classes, and my work. Many of my colleagues simply had extremely poor time management skills--a skill not taught to them in their undergraduate work.

Good teachers work very hard. And good teachers understand that the needs of the school, students, and community will define their working parameters more than their personal desire to leave at 2pm.

[Doremus]

74. You had assigned prep times? Lucky you.

In our district planning time was the first to go.

Primary teachers here don't even have a lunch period to themselves, unless you count the 15 mins between supervising students' lunch and the end of recess.

Heck, if they were really good teachers they could eat lunch and do their planning at the same time during that generous window of time! Shame on the teachers who can't/won't! Shame, shame!

[StarsInHerHair]

37. someone file a RICO lawsuit

[suffragette]

2. Interesting that they could not find "roughly $80 million" but now have around $89 million

to do this.

Perhaps they couldn't "find" that money since they already had other plans for it?

And a K&R for you.

[madfloridian]

8. Either they already had it or someone gave it to them.

Was it Race to the Top money? Was it from Gates or other billionaires?

Be nice to know.

[suffragette]

9. It would be nice to know

where that came from.

And it needs to be emphasized how similar these amounts are.

[proud2BlibKansan]

11. They've had it all along

Raises were agreed to and put in the budget a few months ago. Then a new supt came in and Rahm halted the raises.

[Dokkie]

49. To play the devils advocate

Maybe the $89m one time bride is easier to go by than the $80m per year salary raise for the teachers

[LWolf]

3. I feel for Chicago's students and teachers.

Duncan is bad enough. Why did they elect Rahm?

???

[Drale]

5. It didn't matter who they elected

Every single person running was the same.

[LWolf]

14. There was NO "old Democrat" in the race?

The CTU apparently liked others better.

http://www.ctunet.com/municipal/mayoral-candidate-profiles

[proud2BlibKansan]

12. I talked to one of the teachers there

She was on the committee that interviewed Rahm when he was running for mayor. She said he was an absolute asshole. And he was asking for an endorsement!

[LWolf]

15. I hoped he would lose.

:(

[madfloridian]

17. Didn't he recently scream bad words at the union head?

I think it was his usual f u stuff. I need to find that, saw it just yesterday. I think she hugged him....according to him.

[proud2BlibKansan]

27. Yes he did.

http://chicago.cbslocal.com/2011/09/09/ctu-president-enraged-mayor-swore-disrespected-her-during-private-talk/

[MichiganVote]

4. When some people are incompetent in their own jobs-they attempt to do another's. And fail at that.

[LiberalFighter]

6. Does Illinois have a law pertaining to public collective bargaining requirements?

Rahm is evil.

[madrchsod]

22. yes .....

[Starry Messenger]

7. recommend.

[bluestateguy]

10. I wonder how much of that money will be swallowed up by "administrative costs"

we'll see

[proud2BlibKansan]

13. This is happening in other locations as well

Paying individual teachers or targeting certain schools for pay raises is a union busting technique. I believe it's recommended by Broad.

[madfloridian]

16. Yep, Brizard is Broad Academy class of 2007....

http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2011-05-08/news/ct-met-brizard-profile-0509-20110508_1_new-schools-schools-superintendent-school-district/2

"Brizard was accepted in 2007 into the Eli Broad Superintendents Academy, a management training program that has produced administrators at some of the country's largest urban school districts, including Los Angeles, Boston and New York. As a Broad fellow, Brizard was part of a new wave of reform-minded educators whose data-driven, business-centered approach and support of school choice and strict teacher accountability are often at odds with union leadership."

Broad supers have a real mean streak when it comes to teachers in public schools and their unions.

They are ruthless.

[sulphurdunn]

18. What authorizing body accredits

the Broad Academy? In most states one requirement for a superintendency is having had boots on the ground teaching and administrative experience. Brod's own web site makes it clear that such bona fides are not desirable to its mission. So, who accredits the place? Who says that careers in the military and in business are desirable backgrounds for school superintendents? Why?

[madrchsod]

26. he was chased out of boston.....

[proud2BlibKansan]

29. Broad does it. Money talks.

They're in charge.

The KCMO superintendent just resigned to accept a new position in Michigan. He's getting a signing bonus - funded by Broad.

Money talks.

[sulphurdunn]

62. Yea.

It seems these people pop out of a hat in a district, fuck it up, get run out of town and then pop up in a new one almost immediately. It's like their real job is to screw things up even worse than they already are then move on to the next target.

[proud2BlibKansan]

25. Yes I know

:)

[msanthrope]

19. Good for him. Chicago teachers shouldn't get a dime more for a less-than 6 hour school day.

It is a disgrace that Chicago Schools allow their students to be there for less than 6 hours a day.

Fortunately, some teachers have put their students ahead of their pocketbooks--and wanted the longer day, even without the money.


"Teachers here took a vote last Friday to make the school day longer. Now, instead of kids being here for less than six hours they’ll be here seven and a half.

On playground duty before school, third-grade teacher Blair Wagonheim says the teachers’ vote to extend the school day had nothing to do with cash incentives the district is offering.

WAGONHEIM: We did it because we felt it was what was best for our students. We really do have a unique curriculum that hasn’t been implemented in Chicago schools before, and to really do it correctly we just needed the additional time.

The new school focuses on science, technology, engineering and math—that’s what STEM stands for. Wagonheim says when teachers saw their schedules back in August, they’re the ones who asked the principal for more time."

http://m.wbez.org/story/cash-incentives-will-continue-schools-moving-longer-day-91583


Principals really can't figure out what they would do with a longer school day? Disgraceful.

[Luminous Animal]

30. Though the average CPS elementary student spends approximately 6 1/2 hours on campus each day,

... only slightly more than five hours are spent on classroom instruction. The rest of the day is typically broken up for lunch, scheduled trips to the bathroom and a teacher prep period where students spend time away from the classroom. Some schools squeeze learning time a little further by scheduling a few minutes for recess.

This seems pretty typical to me.

But if the district wants the teachers to work on-site (most teachers put in additional hours after school) above and beyond their contract, they should get paid.

[msanthrope]

33. Then adding 1.5 hours of instructional time to that will be a good idea. As for teachers making

more money, I suspect they would have a stronger case if they didn't close their schools at their lunch hour--2pm.

[Luminous Animal]

34. And the teachers should be paid for it. Work additional hours. Earn additional pay.

How difficult can that be? Currently, my contract is for four 8 hour days. If my employers demanded that I work an additional day, I damn well better be paid for it.

And again, I do not know one teacher that does not put in 1-4 hours of additional hours a day outside of instruction time. This is common knowledge and even though teachers may not be instructing, they certainly are working. These additional hours are factored in during contract negotiations.

[msanthrope]

36. And the teachers in the OP have accepted additional compensation for a longer day.

What's the problem?

[Luminous Animal]

38. Bribery and union busting, pretending that teachers only work 6 hours a day.

Yay! More unpaid work. It is the American way.

[msanthrope]

41. So any teacher who accepted money accepted a bribe? nt

[Luminous Animal]

43. Yes.

[madfloridian]

45. Bribery, union busting, and not clued in about why the longer day.

Rahm has indicated it is to do better on test scores. The teachers want and need to know if it is just testing practice.

I am gathering someone is excusing bribery and union busting because somehow teachers deserve it? Because they did not at once fall in line without being told why?

Thanks for the good arguments you are making on the topic. I can follow your side (can't see the other) and get an idea that now bribery by school officials is okay. Am I close?

:hi:

[Luminous Animal]

47. You are so close that you are hot! Thank you for all your posts madfloridian.

You are a gem!

:hi:

[madfloridian]

56. Well, it seems majority opinion in this thread is that this is just business...

and the teachers' union is to blame. We have come to that point here now.

I guess I should expect it since we have gone so far down the road of accepting anything this administration dishes out in the name of bipartisanship....but I must not quite be there yet.

[madrchsod]

21. i`ve been following this...

from what i`ve seen rahm and his stooges have no idea what they are doing. they expect the teachers to go along with any half assed idea.

bribing teachers is anther low in the recent history of the chicago school system.

[msanthrope]

23. How is lengthening the school day a half-assed idea? n/t

[madrchsod]

24. when there`s no input from the families.

the teachers had no input into the change. then bribing teachers to sign up on a plan that no one knows anything about.

this is nothing new in chicago where duncan blazed his path of corruption across the cps.

[msanthrope]

28. No input from the families??? It's called an election.

Rahm was elected on this plank. Further, on Friday, the City Council passed a resolution supporting this move. You have the elected representatives of the people of Chicago doing what they were elected to do. But for the teacher's union, who, precisely doesn't think this is a good idea?

And teachers had input in the change--they elected a union that rejected it. So they got their say. Just not the final word.



"But parents like Mrs. Mei loved the news that their children would be in school longer.

MEI: She usually gets out at 1:40. So who’s a working parent that gets out at 1:40? Grandma is picking her up, but grandma cannot teach, cannot do anything except just leave them there. So there’s a waste of time basically from 2 o’clock to 6 o’clock. It’s four hours of wasted time.

Mei’s child will now get double periods of math and reading, and five extra minutes in every other subject. She’ll have 45 minutes for recess and lunch. Unfortunately for Mei, her other child goes to a different school and will still get out at 1:40."

http://m.wbez.org/story/cash-incentives-will-continue-schools-moving-longer-day-91583

[Luminous Animal]

32. Meanwhile teachers, because they also do work at home, miss out on time with their children.

Lovely.

[msanthrope]

35. So do all professionals. It's why we make salaries. nt

[Luminous Animal]

39. Not all professionals. It's why we have unions.

[B Calm]

31. I'm pretty sure this against the law.

[madfloridian]

40. But when the highest leaders let it slip by them....

when it is being done by billionaires and the politicians who depend on them...who is going to be brave enough to call it illegal.

I agree with you. I do not think there is a universe in which this is not against the law. Bribing schools?

[bhikkhu]

44. It sounds like they're increasing the teacher's pay in exchange for more work

...pretty normal stuff. It also sounds like the school days there are pretty short by any standard, so it would be better for the kids to have them lengthened.

I imagine the union is opposing it in reaction to the stalled pay raise. Incentives are fine, but a higher baseline is better, from a wage-earner's standpoint...and then the way the incentive is done does undermine the union.

The ins and outs aren't really knowable without being there at the table, so much of it winds up hinging on who is negotiating in good faith, who is putting the kids first, who is doing their best to get everyone together for an agreement that works. Its possible that both sides are in the wrong - I just hope the kids don't have to deal with any fallout, as nobody really gets a good second chance to go through school, if the first time didn't get the job done.

[madfloridian]

46. You really think that is what it sounds like?

You think offering certain schools $150,000 to do things Brizard's way is increasing teachers' pay?

There are many aspects to this, and it is truly scaring me how many people can't see the manipulative tactic of offering huge money if they break with their union.

It shows a mindset in our country that teachers are not worthy of respect and good pay.

[bhikkhu]

48. Why would the union oppose a longer school day?

...that would be my question. And then, what do they want in exchange for working longer hours?

If it were an "unfunded mandate" I would say its unfair and unjust, but if they are willing to increase the funding to both the schools and the teachers to get a longer school day for the kids, I wonder what the problem is.

[madfloridian]

50. You seem to think unions should not be consulted and respected.

The union wants to know what the 90 minutes extra will be used for, and of course they want to be paid for it. There is effing nothing wrong with that at all.

They are only willing to give that money to schools which break with their union.

That is called union busting, and it is a democratic administration that is setting the atmosphere for it.

I notice now that this forum accepts almost anything as along as it is the Obama administration doing it. That scares the hell out of me.

Bribery is wrong, what Brizard is doing might be illegal...and no one here gives a damn.

It's become all about Obama right here right now. Screw seniors and teachers, but make sure we don't criticize him. We worked hard to get him elected, and I am sick at the atmosphere of compromising before the fact that he has set.

When I give that much money and time to candidates, I reserve the right to question.

I taught for over 30 years, and I was union all the way. They were the ones who got good deals for teachers who refused to pay union dues but sure as hell wanted all the goodies.

They are taking money and giving it to just certain schools to get them to do things their way. There is so much wrong with that, and I am sick of the support for it in this thread.

It is NOT okay. It is no longer about just one man named Obama, it is about a country quickly sinking into the kind of moral abyss in which cutting funds to seniors and treating teachers in an ugly way are simply okay.

[bhikkhu]

53. And there was no prior discussion with the union or the teachers?

It sounds like they reached an impasse, and the current thing is a messy end run around the union position. If the union opposes it, why do they?

I don't see now a school board issue in Chicago becomes "all about Obama", in any case - he's got his own job to do.

[madfloridian]

55. It is Obama's education policy. It WAS Bush's policy but now Obama owns it.

I am saying good-bye because I was proud to be a teacher. Now I feel just plain sad when they are treated this way.

Apparently you consider us unimportant.

[bhikkhu]

59. No, I just wonder what the problem is with a longer school day

Everyone involved has the same job - to see that kids receive a good education. From reading, it seems a problem in Chicago was the short school day. I have kids in school, and I am friends with many teachers - a consistent complaint is not enough class-time with the kids to teach everything the kids need to to learn, and we have reasonably long school days here.

So I wonder what the problem was with the longer school day; its hard for me to see teachers rejecting it, so maybe something else is going on?

...and I still don't see what Obama has to do with it. He's a little busy lately to intercede in a school board matter, I would think, and anyway they should settle it locally. As said, everyone involved has the same job, and its a shame when kids suffer because adults can't settle their differences.

[madfloridian]

60. Ask someone else. I am at a loss to explain further.

I keep explaining, you keep repeating the same thing over and over.

[bhikkhu]

64. If both parties have the same goal, I still don't see why there was no agreement

...and I'm most inclined to say that both were at fault. If no one opposes a longer school day, and the money to fund it is available, then they should be able to come to agreement.

Its ridiculous that it got to the point where one side felt it had to force the point on the other, rather than getting together and cooperating toward their common goal.

[boppers]

52. "offering huge money if they break with their union".. in the corporate world, it's usually called:

A "promotion".

[madfloridian]

54. You are doing no favors to people like seniors and teachers...

to post that chill out picture.

He does not have our backs, he does not care what is happening to us.

I do not find it cute or funny.

[boppers]

61. Thanks for the image advice. eom

[proud2BlibKansan]

73. Depends on how they spend the extra time

The union is concerned that it will just be spent babysitting. They are asking for a revised curriculum and standards with more rigor. Rahm is just asking for a longer day without doing substantial work during the extra time.

[bhikkhu]

75. Not according to the Teacher's Union president:

...on adopting the Common Core State Standards

"Chicago Teachers Union President Karen Lewis said Tuesday that the state standards curriculum adds a "breadth and depth" of instruction that has eroded away in this era of high-stakes testing.

"We know how important it is for our students to not just skim the surface, but to dig deep and do some really good work," Lewis said. "We're very excited about this."

Lewis said the union recently received a grant from the American Federation of Teachers to develop lesson plans for the state standards curriculum that would be introduced this year, including a component for English Language Learners."

http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2011-08-31/news/ct-met-cps-curriculum-0831-20110831_1_schools-chief-jean-claude-brizard-curriculum-teachers-union

--------------------------------------------------------

.....and pretty much all the news in Chicago I could find online gives the new curriculum as the sole reason for the longer day - they are adding to existing programs, adding to the length of the school day and the school year, increasing funding for the schools, and increasing teacher's pay.

Apparently its a done-deal, but they are offering bonuses to schools that will begin the program this year instead of next year...which makes me wonder what all the fuss is about.

[madfloridian]

76. You are tuning out what has been said to you. Another link.

Chicago CPO threatened school closings, banned union reps from consulting with teachers.

"The Chicago Teachers Union filed an unfair labor practice complaint to block schools from signing waivers and lengthening class days as a fifth school voted to extend its day. The union accused the governing board of the Chicago Public Schools of “coercing” union members at schools to sign the waivers, which allow them to opt out of the existing teachers contract.

“Asking our members to void parts of their own contract it is unethical and illegal,” union president Karen Lewis said today.

“We want them to cease and desist from its unlawful activity, restore our teachers’ rights, post appropriate notices of its intent to extend school hours and tell us how they intend to make the school day better for our children. We’ve asked them over and over to work with us, not against us.”

The complaint, filed with the Illinois Educational Labor Relations Board, contends CPS: threatened to close schools if teachers did not approve contract modifications; interrogated teachers about their union activities; directed teachers to report their communications with the union; wrote and distributed the contract waiver; and banned union representatives from consulting with teachers before they were coerced into waiving parts of their labor contract."

I thought I would try one more time to point some stuff out to you. They are not against a longer day if they know how it will be used, but they are against union busting. Why aren't you?

[bhikkhu]

77. So, if I have the story right -

The negotiation was all fine, the longer day and the new curriculum was approved, but the argument was on how fast it would get done?

It sounds like the plans were for the fall of 2012 for the new program, and all was agreed, but that then the board pushed for this year, and the union refused? ...and then to bypass the union, they offered immediate funding increases for any school willing to roll out the changes this year, breaking with the union position?

[madfloridian]

78. See, you did not even read the link. You just keep repeating the same line.

I said I would back off. This time it is for good.

[bhikkhu]

80. I read the link. I just want to understand how the falling out started.

Apparently everything was fine on August 1st. The link and the OP are both all about the mess afterwards. Without knowing the cause of the mess, its hard to know what to think of the situation.

If I were looking at the implementation of a new schedule and a new curriculum, as those involved are, I'd look at the best way to do it. You could roll it all out at once in a hurry, and work out the kinks as you went along, and probably find that a number of things could have been done better. Or you could study and plan for a year, work everything out in great detail and get everyone one board and on the same track, then roll it out in a good organized fashion; but then you'd probably find that there were things that weren't thought of anyway, and things that could have been done better, and maybe that year wasn't so well spent as it could have been.

Or, as there are many schools involved, you could begin the new program in just a few schools on a monitored-trial basis, and really focus on working out the best implementation on that smaller scale. By the end of the year it could all be nailed down with some confidence, and set up well for the next year system-wide effort. As far as making big changes and improvements, that may be the most effective and economical, and the least disruptive to the kids themselves...

[proud2BlibKansan]

79. All the fuss is about union busting

This is also likely illegal.

It's a new trick the deformers are playing. Offering bonuses to certain teachers and schools in violation of existing contracts. Straight out of the Gates/Broad handbook.

[madfloridian]

42. Teachers' union filed a lawsuit against school board on Friday.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/09/09/chicago-teachers-union-su_n_955741.html

"The Chicago Teachers Union on Friday filed a unfair labor lawsuit against Mayor Rahm Emanuel's Board of Education, claiming that the board has coerced and bribed schools into lengthening their instructional day by 90 minutes.

The lawsuit, as reported by NBC Chicago, also claims Chicago Public Schools threatened to shutter schools where teachers did not approve the longer day and interrogated and intimidated teachers concerning their union activities, among other allegations.

The lawsuit arrives on the heels of a fourth CPS elementary school -- Benjamin Mays in Englewood -- voting Thursday to waive the union's existing contract with the school system and add 90 minutes to their workday beginning in January. In exchange, the school will receive $75,000 in discretionary funding and its teachers will be given a lump sum payment roughly equal to a 2 percent salary increase."

Yep, bribery is a good word. If that doesn't work, they try intimidation.

Pretty sorry stuff for a Democratic mayor to be pushing.

[madfloridian]

68. “Asking our members to void parts of their own contract it is unethical and illegal”

"“Asking our members to void parts of their own contract it is unethical and illegal,” union president Karen Lewis said today.

“We want them to cease and desist from its unlawful activity, restore our teachers’ rights, post appropriate notices of its intent to extend school hours and tell us how they intend to make the school day better for our children. We’ve asked them over and over to work with us, not against us.”

http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2011-09-09/news/chi-chicago-teachers-union-files-complaint-to-block-schools-from-lengthening-day-20110909_1_jean-claude-brizard-chicago-teachers-union-school-day

[B Calm]

71. +1

[madfloridian]

51. And it appears that the winners here are the "reformers" who can do no wrong.

[Reader Rabbit]

63. Race to the Top is institutional bribery, this is just more blatant.

It also shows how desperate the deformers are to get teachers to throw away their professionalism and self-respect.

[madfloridian]

67. Arne has enabled "blatant", and he makes no effort to show respect.

Bribing teachers is being supported in this very thread at a Democratic forum.

[madfloridian]

66. "There’s no discussion with the people who do the actual work.”

Chicago union head said

“There is no planning. This is just some stuff they threw out. It’s all political. There’s no discussion with the people who do the actual work.”

And Rahm and Brizard started merit pay for principals and forgot to tell the principals.

"Most recently, Emanuel and Brizard neglected to give a head’s up to the president of the Chicago Principals Association before she learned, at a news conference, about the plan to create a merit pay system for school principals. Not exactly a professional way to treat respected colleagues."

http://www.suntimes.com/news/cepeda/7427740-417/wheres-plan-for-longer-school-day.html

The lack of respect for teachers and other educators from the reformers who are being led top down by Arne Duncan and Obama.....is absolutely unbelievable.

And that lack of respect is carrying throughout Democratic forums and into the classrooms. If the president and his education guy don't respect teachers, how do you expect students and parents to do so.

[Jakes Progress]

69. I guess they win Obama's "Race to the Top of the Bottom" award.

[madfloridian]

70. Good one.

And just about true.

[alp227]

72. from all this republican whining about those greedy public unions,

ReTHUGS (and sadly more and more Democrats) will happily let wealthy union busters like JC Brizard run the joint.